Wednesday, August 30

Russia’s war against Ukraine

Lilia Averianova, mother of fighter pilot Andrii “Juice” Pilshchykov, 30, mourns her son at his funeral on Aug. 29 in Kyiv. Pilschykov died in a mid-air collision over Zhytomyr Oblast on Aug. 25.

Russian attacks on Kyiv kill 2, injure 1. Russian forces attacked Kyiv the night of Aug. 30, killing two people and injuring a third, Kyiv City Military Administration Head Serhii Popko reported.

Moscow mayor claims drone shot down outside capital in ‘massive’ attack attempt. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin claimed that Russian air defenses destroyed a drone bound for the city on the night of Aug. 30 amid a “massive” strike on Russia’s western regions.

Pskov Oblast airport closed after Russia claims drone strike destroyed military aircraft. A drone strike at a military airfield in Pskov Oblast, Russia, destroyed four Il-76 aircraft on Aug. 30, Oblast Governor Mikhail Vedernikov and Russian state media claimed.

Helicopter belonging to Russia’s FSB crashes in Chelyabinsk region. An Mi-8 helicopter belonging to Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) crashed near Chelyabinsk on Aug. 29, killing three crew members, according to Russian authorities.

General Staff: Ukrainian forces advance southeast of Robotyne. Ukraine’s military reported on Aug. 29 that it made gains southeast of recently liberated Robotyne toward the village of Verbove, Zaporizhzhia Oblast.

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White House on Prigozhin: Kremlin has ‘long history of killing its opponents’. White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre implied during a press briefing on Aug. 29 that the Kremlin was behind the death of Wagner Group’s founder Yevgeny Prigozhin, but stopped short of saying so explicitly.

Ukrainian authorities: Russia preparing new wave of mobilization in occupied Crimea. Russia plans to mobilize up to 30,000 people and call up 10,000 previously conscripted soldiers in occupied Crimea, reported the Mission of Ukraine’s President in Crimea.

SBU: Russian colonel tortured civilians to death in Kherson Oblast. The Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) has found evidence that Russian Colonel Viktor Bedryk tortured and killed two Ukrainian civilians in occupied Kherson Oblast, the SBU reported via Telegram on Aug. 29.

UNICEF: Only third of Ukrainian children can attend schools in person. United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) published a report on Aug. 28, highlighting that some Ukrainian children are facing their fourth year of online schooling ahead of the start of the new school year on Sep. 1.

SBU detains military medical commission official for corruption. The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has detained a military medical commission official, who is suspected of allowing over 50 people to evade the draft in exchange for bribes, the SBU said on Aug. 29.

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Ukraine war latest: Military reports advance on southeastern front; Putin to visit China

The Ukrainian military reported on Aug. 29 that it continues to move forward on the southeastern front, including near the newly liberated village of Robytne in Zaporizhzhia Oblast.

Photo: Diego Herrera Carcedo via Getty Images

As counteroffensive presses forward in southeast, ‘every meter costs a life’

Twenty-nine-year-old assault company commander Bohdan knows what’s at stake when he makes decisions on the battlefield.

Photo: Asami Terajima/The Kyiv Independent

Human cost of war

Governor: Russian attack kills 1 in Kharkiv Oblast. Russian forces shelled Kupiansk on Aug. 29, killing a 45-year-old man, Kharkiv Oblast Governor Oleh Syniehubov reported. The man was employed as a security guard at a meat processing plant and was at work when the factory was hit.

Death toll of Russian strike against Poltava Oblast rises to 4. The death toll of a Russian strike against an industrial facility in Poltava Oblast on Aug. 28 rose to four as rescuers found the body of another victim, Governor Dmytro Lunin reported on Aug. 29.

Man wounded in Russian shelling, 2 killed by mine in Kherson Oblast. A Russian strike against the village of Olhivka in Kherson Oblast on Aug. 29 injured a 75-year-old man, and two men were killed by a landmine near the village of Sadove, local officials reported.

Ukraine retrieves bodies of 84 fallen soldiers. The bodies of 84 fallen Ukrainian defenders were returned from Russian-occupied territories, the Reintegration Ministry reported on Aug. 29.

UN records 9,511 civilian deaths in Ukraine since February 2022. The OHCHR added that the true numbers are likely to be “considerably higher,” as the UN is unable to confirm information from areas where there are “intense hostilities.”

General Staff: Russia has lost 261,840 troops in Ukraine. According to the report, Russia has also lost 4,414 tanks, 8,579 armored fighting vehicles, 7,909 vehicles and fuel tanks, 5,450 artillery systems, 733 multiple launch rocket systems, 500 air defense systems, 315 airplanes, 316 helicopters, 4,387 drones, and 18 boats.

International response

US announces $250 million in military aid for Ukraine. The U.S. State Department announced a new package of military assistance for Ukraine on Aug. 29, including AIM-9M air defense missiles, HIMARS munitions, Javelin systems, and other aid with a total value of $250 million.

Kuleba, Stoltenberg discuss Ukraine’s next steps toward NATO membership. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba held a telephone call with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg on Ukraine’s next steps on its path to the Alliance membership, Kuleba said on Aug. 29.

Bloomberg: Putin to visit China in first trip abroad since his arrest warrant. Russian President Vladimir Putin has agreed to visit China as his first trip abroad since the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant against him over war crimes committed in Ukraine, Bloomberg reported on Aug. 29, citing three undisclosed sources.

Japanese PM, Zelensky discuss grain exports and peace formula in phone call. The two discussed extending the grain corridor as a way to export Ukrainian agricultural products following Russia’s unilateral termination of the Black Sea Grain Initiative and repeated attacks on Ukrainian ports.

Czechia investigates Raiffeisen Bank due to its activities in Russia. Czechia has opened an investigation of the Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI) over its ongoing business activities in Russia, the Czech Television public broadcaster reported on Aug. 29.

Spiegel: German company under investigation for selling drone components to Russia. Investigators in Germany suspect a company of selling electronic components used to produce Russian Orlan-10 drones, German media outlet Der Spiegel reported on Aug. 29.

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Today’s Ukraine Daily was brought to you by Toma Istomina, Elsa Court, Oleksiy Sorokin, Dinara Khalilova, Martin Fornusek, and Abbey Fenbert.

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